Allah calls Himself Al-Mutakabbir— The Supremely Great, The Perfection of Greatness— on one occasion in the Quran. He is the One who is supremely great. Al-Mutakabbir reveals His Greatness and power at every moment and in every incident!
The Supreme, The Possessor of All Rights, The Perfect Greatness
Mutakabbir comes from the root kaaf-baa-raa, which has three main meanings. The first main meaning is to be great in size, rank, or dignity, and the second to to be great in age and in learning. The third main meaning to have rights, privileges, and attributes that others don’t have.
This root appears 161 times in the Quran in 18 derived forms. Examples of these forms are kabura (“hard”), yastakbiroona (“arrogant”), akbaru (“(is)greater”), and al-kibari (“the old age”).
Linguistically, kibriya means greatness and sovereignty, and it encompasses the meanings of the perfection of one’s self and existence; nobody can be described as such except Allah. Allahu Akbar– Allah is the Greatest— comes from the same root, as well as the name of Allah, Al-Kabeer. Al-Mutakabbir is the One who possesses all greatness, who is above having any of the qualities of His creatures, who cannot be harmed by the oppressors among His creation, and whose greatness and pride are the utmost.
Al-Mutakabbir Himself says: He is Allah , other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Pure, the Perfection, the Bestower of Faith, the Overseer, the Exalted in Might, the Compeller, the Superior. Exalted is Allah above whatever they associate with Him. [Quran, 59:23]
Allah Al-Mutakabbir versus the arrogant
Allah ‘azza wa jall describes people as mutakabbireen (arrogant) on multiple occasions in the Quran. They have arrogance in their hearts and actions towards Allah by disbelieving in His signs and they are arrogant to other people by looking down on them due to position, race, wealth, etc. The Prophet salallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: Allah is beautiful and loves beauty, arrogance is: rejecting the truth and looking down on people. [Muslim, At-Tirmidhee] Only Allah is al-Mutakabbir in a positive sense.
A lesson on how to battle pride
What is the opposite of kibr (arrogance)? It is humility, the adornment of a believer. Abu Hurayrah radiyallaahu ‘anhu narrated that the Prophet salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: . . . and no one will exercise humility for Allah’s sake, except that Allah will raise him up [Muslim] Urwah ibn Zubair radiyallaahu ‘anhu said: I saw Umar carrying a large leather water canteen on his shoulder. I said to him, ‘O Amir-ul-Mu’mineen, you shouldn’t be carrying that’. Umar replied by saying, A delegation came to Medina and I saw their obedience to me, and some ‘nakwah’ entered into my heart and I wanted to destroy it.
We all know of the strong personality of Umar radiyallaahu ‘anhu and yet when a small amount of pride (nakwah) entered into his heart, he hurried in an attempt to destroy it before it destroyed him.
How Can You Live by This Name?
1. Be great by being humble.
O you who believe, whoever of you should revert from his religion, Allah will bring forth a people He will love, and who will love Him, (who are) humble towards the believers, and powerful against the disbelievers . . . [Quran, 5:54] The greatest strength that you can attain is to have true reliance upon Allah ‘azza wa jall and to seek His support in hardship and ease. The highest level of greatness you can attain is to show humility (tawaada) to your Lord. Those who are well grounded in knowledge say: ‘We believe in it; it is all from our Lord.’ None will take heed except the people of understanding [Quran, 3:7]. Don’t only follow the ayaat or ahadeeth that suit you, but strive to apply the whole message to your daily life and dealings.
2. Respect others for the sake of Allah.
O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule [another] people; perhaps they may be better than them; nor let women ridicule [other] women; perhaps they may be better than them. [Quran, 49:11] Your knowledge of others is only by perception. Don’t mock or insult others as they might have a higher position with Al-Mutakabbir than yourself! Respect others, even though they may possess less beauty, knowledge, wealth, fame, or status or have a different skin colour. The Prophet salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: Whoever possesses an atom’s weight of kibr will not enter into the paradise [Muslim]. Abu Bakr radiyallaahu ‘anhu said: Let not any Muslim belittle another Muslim, for the lowest of the Muslims is great in the Sight of Allah.
3. Battle arrogance.
Allah ‘azza wa jall is the only true king and you are His slave— let’s not forget this. It’s easy to fall into arrogance (takabbur), thinking you know better and transgressing the limits set by Allah al-Mutakabbir. So keep checking your heart for feelings of arrogance creeping in and deal with them straight away by reminding yourself of the greatness of Allah. Al-Hasan al-Basri said: I wonder at the son of Adam! He uses his hand to wash himself from his waste once or twice a day, yet he seeks to compete with the All-Mighty? Don’t get carried away with your wealth or achievements, know it is from Al-Mutakabbir and not from yourself. The way to avoid arrogance is to remember Allah as much as we can until it becomes a habit to instantly thank Him for any good that comes our way, so increase in saying alhamdulillah!
4. Be humble to increase your knowledge
Abdullah ibn Mu’tazz radiyallahu ‘anhu said: The humble student is the one who gets the most knowledge, just as the lowest places on earth collect the most water. So always be humble towards your teachers and invoke Allah for them.
5. Ask al-Mutakabbir.
Every day ask Allah al-Mutakabbir to save you and protect you from the evil of pride and arrogance.
O Allah, Al-Mutakabbir, we know that You are supremely Great. Guide our hearts and actions to humility towards You, our Deen and Your creation. Protect us from arrogance and assist us to ways to cure any arrogance that entered our hearts. Make us of those who are blessed to witness Your Grandeur in Paradise, ameen!
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from the dark with you above me chapter 3
“Yeah,” she said. “I think it’ll be a great weekend.” ao3
“Tracey, just who I wanted to see” Jack said, approaching Tracey and Serena who were sitting in a booth by the window with salads and coffee. Abbie and Jack had similar plans for after they delivered their news, though they were both more sandwich people. Serena looked a little pink for half a second and coughed into her napkin. Abbie had the advantage of being prepared.
“Serena,” Jack acknowledged the other attorney’s presence.
“To what do we owe the pleasure?” Tracey asked, not bothering to conceal her annoyance at her meal being interrupted.
“Can’t I just be happy to see you?” Jack said with his characteristic smile.
“You could’ve expressed that joy this morning,” Tracey said returning his smile.
“My mistake,” Jack said. “No, I wanted to warn you,” he said, “Arthur is going to push for a plea on your Cortez case. Apparently there is pressure for a resolution from the mayor. Just thought you should be prepared.” Tracey nodded. Serena drummed her fingers against the table and sighed.
“Interesting,” Tracey said.
Abbie watched Serena as she lifted her latte and took a sip, as she licked the foam off of her lips. She was having trouble convincing herself last Friday had been a mistake. She enjoyed herself, but she couldn’t afford to get herself into a complicated situation like this one. She had a couple, very fun, lapses in judgment.
“It is,” Jack said.
“Well, I’ll talk to him,” Tracey said. “Thanks, Jack.”
“No problem,” he said. “Enjoy your lunch.”
Jack and Abbie ordered quickly, and when their sandwiches arrived, Jack asked a question Abbie was hoping to avoid.
“How was your weekend?”
Abbie tensed. “It was fine,” she said.
“Just fine?” Jack pried.
“Uneventful,” Abbie said, knowing he could pick up on her tone. He looked at her expectantly and she gave him more information. “I went out with some friends.” Jack seemed pleasantly surprised. “How was yours?” she asked.
“I didn’t do much. I read a novel.”
“Nice,” she said. “So about this motion.”
---
Jack and Charlie were letting Abbie and Alex do most of the work for this case, even inside the courtroom. Tuesday saw them in the office late, buried in paperwork, poking at cold butter chicken.
“I’m starting to lose some hope,” Alex said.
“I’m not,” Abbie said, only half believing herself.
“I don’t believe you.”
“I’m being genuine.” Abbie turned a page and took a bite. The silence between the two of them had hardly settled in when Alex spoke again.
“Do you really think we shouldn’t cut a deal?” She asked. Abbie did not want to take a deal of any kind. On the other hand, Nash was a killer who had slipped through the DA’s fingers once before, and without the murder weapon, their evidence was thin. They could place him near the crime scene-- along with a hundred other people. He had been more careful this time and there had not been any bloody clothes in his closet. Nobody saw him drag the victim into the bathroom, nobody heard her scream. He wore a condom. It was as though a ghost had committed the crime. He even seemed to select his target arbitrarily, without a concrete motive they could present to the jury. If that wasn’t enough, thanks to a hearing that had not gone their way, they weren’t even able to mention the case Jack hadn’t been able to get a conviction on. His lawyer had suggested a deal a few days before, and once the weapon was definitely out of the picture, Jack and Charlie were amenable to the idea. As much as they wanted to win this at trial, they wanted Nash in prison. Abbie was the final holdout. She sighed.
“I certainly don’t want to.”
“But do you really think we can get a conviction? I mean, we’ve had four detectives going through this case with a fine tooth comb for weeks.”
Abbie waited a minute, thinking over what she could say next, but Alex beat her to it.
“Serena thinks it’s remarkable that Pierce would even suggest man one.”
The mention of Serena took her off guard.
“Serena has an opinion on our case?” She said, cold and annoyed. Serena had no standing. Alex exhaled a laugh.
“Serena has an opinion on everything.”
“I just don’t see why you would feel the need to consult with anybody but those of us who are actually on the case.” Alex smiled at her.
“Serena and I talk about everything. I trust her judgment and she trusts mine.”
“Well, I don’t know her well enough to agree,” she said. “The only perspectives that should matter are those of the attorneys and detectives on the case.”
“Right,” Alex said. “And everyone but you is on the same page.” Abbie couldn’t argue with that. She knew she would eventually be outvoted if this went on much longer.
“Look,” Abbie said. “Would you ask the detectives to canvass the gala guests one more time? Maybe someone has spontaneously remembered something.” It was a long shot, but she thought it could be worth it.
“Why can’t you do it?” Alex asked.
“Start with Benson, she can break the news. I’m sure she’ll be receptive” Abbie said. She had picked up on whatever was going on between Alex and the detective, they were not subtle. Alex considered it.
“I imagine she would be as receptive if you did the asking.”
“Sure,” Abbie said. They looked at each other, waiting for the other person to blink.
“Fine,” Alex said. “I’ll call her in the morning.”
“Thank you,” Abbie said.
---
Abbie collided with someone in the front doorway at One Hogan Place. Hot coffee splashed onto her from the opening of the plastic lid. Papers went flying from the other person’s arms.
“Sorry, sorry,” they said.
“Hi, Serena,” Abbie said, amused. Serena was hastily gathering what she had dropped. She looked up. Her face was faintly pink.
“Hi,” Serena said, out of breath, as she stood up, messy stack of papers in tow. “I was just headed to the courthouse.”
“Naturally,” Abbie said. She looked down at her sweater to assess the extent of the spill, cursing herself for wearing white today. Serena did not reply. “Well, it’s nice to see you,” Abbie said.
“You too,” Serena said. “I should,”
“Me too,” Abbie said, stepping back to let Serena out of the door.
As she walked upstairs, Abbie couldn’t help but think about how endearing Serena could be.
---
“Come in,” Abbie said in response to the knock at her door.
“Good news and bad news,” Olivia said.
“Oh great,” Abbie said, putting aside her pen.
“Good news is that we have a witness. The bad news is he’s the victim’s ex boyfriend who has multiple domestic violence complaints.” Abbie brought her hand to her temple. Of course it couldn’t be simple.
“I imagine that’s why he wasn’t forthcoming earlier.”
“Yep,” Olivia said. “I mean, can we still use him?”
“How credible is his account?”
“Very. He was following her around the ballroom and therefore he saw Nash pull her into the bathroom and heard him say ‘shut the fuck up bitch’ before it went silent. Then he, quote, ‘had another canapé.’”
“Jesus,” Abbie said. “Then yes, we should still be able to use him.”
“Can you try and exclude any mention of the domestic incidents?”
“Unfortunately not,” Abbie said. “And I have to tell the defense about them.” Olivia’s face fell. “I know. Ultimately it’s Jack and Charlie’s call whether or not to put him on the stand.”
“You can’t let him get away with this again,” Olivia said.
“I know,” Abbie said. “We’re doing everything within our power. Have you told everyone else?”
“No,” Olivia said. “Since you ordered the re-canvass, I thought I’d tell you first.”
“Thanks, detective Benson,” Abbie said, appreciative.
“Olivia,” she said. “No problem.” She was charming. Abbie saw what Alex saw in her. “I’m going to go tell everyone else.”
“Jack stepped out for some food but he’ll be back soon. Alex and Charlie are in his office.”
“Thanks,” Olivia said. Abbie picked up a slight disappointment in her voice.
---
“Shouldn’t you go home? It’s a Friday night,” Jack said, poking his head into her office. “It’s late.”
“I know you, of all people, are suggesting I neglect important work in favor of sleep.”
“On the contrary, Abbie, I of all people know how important sleep is.” A noise behind him made Jack turn around. “Serena,” he said. “I was just telling Miss Carmichael here to follow your example.”
Serena walked up next to him. She had on a nice black fall jacket and carried a brown briefcase. She looked tired, her hair was slightly disheveled. She smiled at Abbie and Abbie smiled back wider. She liked Serena’s smile. She was very expressive, which Abbie found both confusing and endearing.
“Actually, Tracey just kicked me out. Sorry to disappoint, Jack,” she said.
“And I am following her lead,” Jack said. “Let’s call you two a cab.”
“You can’t make me leave,” Abbie said, stubborn.
“Can’t I?” Jack said. As much as she hated to admit it, Abbie was ready to leave. She acquiesced, gathering her things. They were able to catch a cab quickly after they determined they were going in the same direction.
“Goodnight, ladies,” Jack said, opening the door for them.
“Ladies,” Serena repeated.
“Right,” Abbie said.
An awkward silence fell over the car. Serena broke it.
“Alex told me, about the witness,” she said.
“Alex tells you everything, it seems.”
“We always have.” Abbie considered what everything included here.
Serena hadn’t left her mind this week. She was thinking about her significantly more than she would an ordinary hook-up. Serena was attractive, interesting, and great in bed. That thought was at the front of her mind, it hung in the air between them. Only a foot separated them, and it made her think about touching her. She knew it was a bad idea. She didn’t find herself caring.
Serena touched her first. She reached over and tucked a strand of hair out of her face and let her hand trace down to her shoulder.
“So,” she said. “Was it a good week?”
Abbie cleared her throat.
“I’ve had worse,” she said.
“I’m just glad it’s Friday. I hope my weekend is relaxing.”
“I have a feeling it will be,” Abbie replied, her voice low.
They reached Abbie’s place first. Serena gave her a pointed look that asked a question without words.
Abbie got out of the cab and opened Serena’s door. She took her hand and helped her out like a gentleman.
“Yeah,” she said. “I think it’ll be a great weekend.”
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